The time has come and the 42UT50 arrived at my house earlier this week. The reason for my late post was to get it set up, running misc content, and get it calibrated. So I'll be giving you a review of my 42UT50 based on the limited time I've had with it thus far. As I mentioned earlier.. I planned on ordering both the 42 and 55UT50 but I decided to hold off on the 55" until I at least got the 42" for the bedroom to see how it met my standards (which are high).

First off I want to get this outta the way.... HOLY ****! What a tv this is. Mind you I'm coming from some pretty high end sets over the years including several Sony 34XBR960s, Samsung locally dimmed 46A950, Pioneer 4270HD, and eventually a Pioneer 5020FD Kuro that I used D-Nice's settings (after service menu offsets) for the past 3.5 years. So to say I'm accustomed to jet blacks, near perfect color accuracy, fluid motion, and a tv able to handle any content (pal, ntsc, sd, hd, etc) with ease is an understatement.

There is no one area that my Kuro outperforms the 42UT50. Let me repeat that... NO AREA in which it outperforms. I'll break this review down in segments hoping not to leave anything off.

Blacks-

Obviously we all know contrast ratio is the most important aspect of picture quality, rivaling color and resolution itself. The blacks your tv is able to reproduce tells us exactly what we're dealing with. I was expecting the worse here from my previous experience with Panasonic plasmas, and in general every other tv that didn't bare the logo "Kuro" or "Pioneer" on it. I will ignore local dimming LCDs due to the fact that their pixels shut off and to me it's not a proper measurement. Black crush, blooming, etc not in the same league. This is the second tv I've personally seen/had to date that passed the grueling Pioneer Blu-ray demo disc. I had a 42ST30 for a short time before returning it last year. It was a long shot from my Kuro to the point blacks looked grey with this demo disc, and nearly every Blu-ray movie I tried on it. Even calibrated I wasn't satisfied with the color either, but I'll cover that later. The blacks on this tv will satisfy anyone. The scene in particular with objects and fish swimming in an all-black environment had my jaw dropped. In my man cave in which I do all my critical viewing in the dark you could see nothing but the fish or object on screen. The bezel of the tv, along with the walls and room itself vanished. I could barely make out the black on the tv. It looked like a less than 1% pattern which is crazy. In fact it at times it had more pop than my Kuro due to a brighter picture. I tested this with some of my favorite movies with dark scenes including The Thing, Sin City, and Batman and not once did I pay attention to the anamorphic black bars. Outside of the Kuro there is no other tv that impressed me like this. Even with last year's top of the line sets I found myself distracted by the greyish bars to the point I couldn't enjoy dark films. It was certainly not the case here.

Anamorphic Black Bars-

Not including LCDs with local dimming, this is the only other tv other than the Kuro with black bars vanishing in all but extreme dark scenes. When the screen goes black then yeah you can see a slight glow.. but the same can be said about the Kuro. No winner here. With a 0% background showing, both are as close to 'black hole black' as plasma gets at this point. The only difference is with any content present and I give the nod to the UT50 due to more brightness and pop (not lcd fake pop but overall natural pop). During the first couple minutes of Sin City I sorta noticed the bars like any other quality plasma (Kuro) but for the rest of the film it vanished once your eyes get used to seeing that much dark. I sound like a broken record here but I don't know how to describe it other than being very Kuroish.

Color-

I dialed it in using a blue filter with several calibration discs including Disney's Wow, AVSHD, DVE HD, etc and they all showed the same results of 48 (Tint at 0) using the graphics output for hdmi settings. At first I wasn't satisfied with the default hdmi settings similar to the ST30 it just lacked. But as soon as I changed it to graphics is where it came alive. Now the colors aren't overblown in your face and more subdued like the Kuro. Skin tones are spot on.. in fact more so than my XBR960 which was my reference up till this point. I'm sure if I had the Kuro professionally calibrated it could be better but to me there was always a reddish skin tone that I couldn't defeat. It's still okay but I'd notice it now and then. I haven't seen any skin tone problems yet with the UT50. I've only spent about 10 hours with it now but this is a problem I usually notice right away with any panel so I believe this one is good to go.

Motion-

This is an area I feel bests my Kuro. I don't think it's a question. I prefer no motion interpolation as to watch films smooth like you'd see at the cinema with proper judder. None of my tvs ever got this right but this one does. The first thing I did was turn the motion smoother OFF.. along with any other digital enhancements (after all it's digital). Pans are now butter smooth without the side effect of motion smoothing. I watched a few scenes of Pirates of the Caribbean in which even my Kuro makes my head turn during slow pans that are now watchable. The only other way for me to defeat this in the past was with a low setting of motion interpolation (ST30, LCDs, etc). But now with it disabled it's as smooth as ever while still preserving natural motion. I don't know how they did it, but they did it. I'm very impressed here.

Flicker-

48hz mode is unusable, as it flickers like the models before it. This is fine with me since 60hz is perfect. This tv also doubles nicely as a PC monitor. I hooked it up via hdmi to my Nvidia equipped desktop and everything syncs smoothly and the mouse glides naturally. Haven't tested it with games but if it's anything like the ST30 it should be good. I'll update later.

Green Blob / Uniformity-

The ST30 I had last year had a green blob in the middle of the screen with contrast set too high. I haven't noticed a green blob with this one with it dialed up yet. I tested this with a white background. Uniformity seems really good on this set. There is no blobs, clouding, etc black screens are black and white screens are white with no noticeable artifacts on color patterns. Probably not the best I've seen in the world, but should satisfy even demanding users.

Image Retention-

I haven't had enough time with this set to be fair. I will say that I noticed the Disney logo burned onto the screen with it turned off after calibrating. But after watching content that filled the screen for a few minutes it vanished. This is a normal trait for plasmas so what can I say...par for the course? My Kuro did the same thing when new and I still notice it now and then but it's never been a long term problem. The fact that the logo went away so quickly tells me that hopefully it won't be a problem.

Reflections-

Yes this tv reflects a lot with windows and/or lighting in the room during the day. More so than most. I can see how this will be a problem for some but personally I don't mind it. Compared to the Kuro it acts similar, if not maybe a little worse. This is a tradeoff that I will make to get the best what I think is the best picture possible currently on the market. If it bothers you then the ST50 will suit you better. I don't test tvs during the daytime as I'm strictly an after dark movie buff, and if that's you than I suggest the UT50. This is something you'd have to see in store for yourself, but can tell you it's like most plasmas if you can deal with it. To sum it up it's similar to the 46A950 I had which looked like a mirror turned off. To me this only adds to the vibrancy, sharpness, and natural pop with the lights out but to others will take away value during the day. To each his own.

Conclusion-

This tv IMO is the deal of the decade. It's what us videophiles crave here at AVS every day. It's crazy how much I paid for this UT50 to get a picture I thought wouldn't be possible until the next couple years. The reason I didn't go for the ST50 was because of that aggressive anti-glare filter that's on it (louver filter). Not due to cost. Not due to hype. Not due to bang-for-buck, not due to any other reason. Hell.. I'd pay double what I did for even a 42" to get the picture that I'm after.

After inspecting the ST50 up close I came to the conclusion that the UT50 has the better picture. It's plain and simple. The UT50 has more pop, feels like it has more brightness than it does, is actually sharper, and just in general better as a Kuro replacement and it's all due to the fact that it doesn't include that all-miraculous filter than hundreds on this board rant and rave about. I've even been told ppl here wouldn't consider a tv without some sort of filter like that. Well I'm here to tell you that they blew it out of proportion.

I'm also sure some will say it's not a proper comparison with the Kuro due to the difference in size (42" vs 50") with some of my comments regarding sharpness and brightness. But I've had a 42ST30 and smaller sets in my home before and this tv had their number. I also gave the Kuro the benefit of the doubt to be fair. I stand by what I said. If your looking for the next best thing then look no further.

With the tiniest difference in blacks between them I just can't recommend the Kuro to someone shopping now.. even if they could buy them both new. The benefits of the UT50 outweighs it. The ability to display 3D, the faster phosphors, 16ms input lag in Game Mode if that's your thing, certain critical scenes in film have more impressive blacks and bars that literally vanish. The Kuro I'd say has an overall more solid stable blacks but at peak times the UT50 I thought impressed me more. Like I said.. the difference is null. We really need to get a MLL reading of the UT50 because I highly doubt the ST50 is lower. It also has natural sharpness and fluid motion that's beautiful.. something the Kuro has as well but it's certainly not downgraded here. Like I said, IMO I don't believe the Kuro actually bests anything here in the real world outside of technical labs.

This was the results I achieved using the Disney Wow Blu-ray disc. I backed it up using Digital Video Essentials HD. In both cases using Graphics content type resulted in more accurate color saturation. I came up with Contrast at 78-84 using different patterns but ended up using 83. Your mileage may vary. Brightness was on the money at 57. Some may like 56 but I tend to bump it one notch to get the most out of it. 57 shows an all-black screen. I found motion smoother set to Weak didn't really do much. On a motion test pattern it smoothed the bar ever so slightly. But a Medium setting resulted in obvious smoothing. I will say the Medium setting far outperformed motion interpolations I've seen in the past..if that's your thing. I saw almost zero artifacts at this setting during pans which just a couple years ago I would have thrown the tv out the window lol. But purists will keep it Off and it does a fantastic job set to Off. It doesn't need any sharpness either. With the same patterns this tv is sharper than my Kuro set to -15 (lowest it goes). So purists will have a ball here enjoying natural razor sharp motion pictures. Sharpness at 0 on this set is as good as hdtv can be. Another example that I will favor this tv from now on.

Well I hope you enjoyed reading my review. I'll get the 55" in sometime next week and will post my impressions along with settings shortly after. I'll wrap this up by saying....

...and they say this tv is the low end

I've had this set for over a month and cannot agree with you more on your review. I absolutely love this set and I knew this was going to be a much overlooked set due to the ST50. I would not replace this with the ST50 and have seen it but I love the UT50 that much. The blacks on the UT50 are incredible! By the way nice review.

Great Review! I was actually starting to look at the samsung pn43e450 as an alternative to the 42ut50 to save a little cash, but you have made me pause and shift back towards the ut50. Is the 55inch going to replace your 5020? Once again thanks for the review.

So to sum up the UT50 is a Kuro killer, destroys the ST30 from last year and bests the St50 from this year, in fact I'm betting it destroys both the E8000 and the VT50. On my way to pick up one now

Not sure if this is sarcasm but I never said the UT50 is a Kuro killer. What I do think is that this is the next best thing...IMO. There are a few times when I watch some reference material that I think "Kuro is still king" but in general it was hard to tell which is a first for me. It's an obvious improvement over last year's sets. I realize panels differ from one to the other but so far based on my experience the UT50 has none of the anomalies that my ST30 had such as a green blob, and grey anamorphic bars in the dark. If you can get past the anti-glare filter, and perhaps enjoy it, then by all means the ST50 is in fact superior for your situation.

Great Review! I was actually starting to look at the samsung pn43e450 as an alternative to the 42ut50 to save a little cash, but you have made me pause and shift back towards the ut50. Is the 55inch going to replace your 5020? Once again thanks for the review.

The 5020 has been so good to me and it's going to be hard to replace it. The original plan was to keep the Kuro in the man cave for full time duty with the PS3 for gaming and Blu-rays, and put the 55UT50 in the living room. But now I'm considering going with the 60UT50 and squeezing it in the man cave for full time 'everything' duty with the 42UT50 tucked in the bedroom which I'll enjoy.

Common sense tells me to keep the Kuro only for the fact that it's sorta legendary and always makes an excellent backup. Based on how I feel when I see the 55 or 60 in the house, most likely the Kuro will be going to the living room and preserved as much as possible. The UT50 exceeded my expectations.

Not sure if this is sarcasm but I never said the UT50 is a Kuro killer. What I do think is that this is the next best thing...IMO. There are a few times when I watch some reference material that I think "Kuro is still king" but in general it was hard to tell which is a first for me. It's an obvious improvement over last year's sets. I realize panels differ from one to the other but so far based on my experience the UT50 has none of the anomalies that my ST30 had such as a green blob, and grey anamorphic bars in the dark. If you can get past the anti-glare filter, and perhaps enjoy it, then by all means the ST50 is in fact superior for your situation.

Obviously Panasonic has made some incremental improvements over last years models. I'd be curious to see an actual measument of the black levels. My guess is that they may be close to the ST50 but would not be as good as the blacks on the GT50 and VT50

As far as gray bars on the ST30 you obviously had a defective set. I havent seen any evidence of that behavior or green blobs, I think it is pretty typical here to run down the previous years models. At any rate since I dont own a UT50 nor have I seen one I will bow out of this thread.

As far as gray bars on the ST30 you obviously had a defective set. I havent seen any evidence of that behavior or green blobs, I think it is pretty typical here to run down the previous years models. At any rate since I dont own a UT50 nor have I seen one I will bow out of this thread.

I in fact had one a year ago and yes it did have a giant green blob smack dab in the middle of the screen. I was unlucky. Call me crazy but I think you'd return it too. Opinions vary and I just gave mine with the review coming from a current 9G Kuro owner. It has nothing to do with putting down last year's models. I apologize if it came across that way.

I in fact had one a year ago and yes it did have a giant green blob smack dab in the middle of the screen. I was unlucky. Call me crazy but I think you'd return it too. Opinions vary and I just gave mine with the review coming from a current 9G Kuro owner. It has nothing to do with putting down last year's models. I apologize if it came across that way.

I dont think I ever claimed anywhere that the "grey" bars blended into the bezel obviously they do not, they are however black not grey. The blacks on the ST30 are good not 9g level not top of the line Panny or Samsung level. I think they are good enough to make for an outstanding picture once the set is properly calibrated.

For you that level of black is obviously important and it is more important than it is to me that's fine I have no issue with that. If Panasonic has truly achieved 9g Kuro blacks in an entry level model then kudos to them. That bodes well for the ST, GT and VT line as well. I am a Panasonic fan have owned three Pannys and love the build quality. I think last year was an off year for them in the terms of quality control.

I actually considered the UT50 it wasnt availible in the 55 inch size when I was looking to replace my broken GT25, so at the Sears bargain price(ST30) it was just a too good a deal to pass up. I am sure your set is great and I am glad you are enjoying it. Keep us posted on how the 55/60 inch turns out for you.

I dont think I ever claimed anywhere that the "grey" bars blended into the bezel obviously they do not, they are however black not grey. The blacks on the ST30 are good not 9g level not top of the line Panny or Samsung level. I think they are good enough to make for an outstanding picture once the set is properly calibrated.

For you that level of black is obviously important and it is more important than it is to me that's fine I have no issue with that. If Panasonic has truly achieved 9g Kuro blacks in an entry level model then kudos to them. That bodes well for the ST, GT and VT line as well. I am a Panasonic fan have owned three Pannys and love the build quality. I think last year was an off year for them in the terms of quality control.

I actually considered the UT50 it wasnt availible in the 55 inch size when I was looking to replace my broken GT25, so at the Sears bargain price(ST30) it was just a too good a deal to pass up. I am sure your set is great and I am glad you are enjoying it. Keep us posted on how the 55/60 inch turns out for you.

Cheers to you mate. If mine didn't have a green blob then I would have thought twice about returning it. It's just frustrating to go through the whole ordeal of bringing a set home to find a problem such as that. But, I was unlucky and that's all there is to it.

The reason I'm so demanding over bars that fade at night is because I've been using a Sony XBR960 and a Kuro for years. So I can tell right away how far we are achieving goals set years ago. What I mean by the ST30 having 'grey bars' is that I can see them almost all the time with the lights out. Your right it's technically not the color 'grey' but it glows more than I'd like nonetheless. You'll see what I mean when you watch a UT50 in a dark room that Panasonic was really on the ball this year. Your also correct about incremental improvements. Sure it's no miracle tv but for someone fresh shopping for a brand new set I would point them toward the UT50 first, esp with budget in mind.

Cheers to you mate. If mine didn't have a green blob then I would have thought twice about returning it. It's just frustrating to go through the whole ordeal of bringing a set home to find a problem such as that. But, I was unlucky and that's all there is to it.

The reason I'm so demanding over bars that fade at night is because I've been using a Sony XBR960 and a Kuro for years. So I can tell right away how far we are achieving goals set years ago. What I mean by the ST30 having 'grey bars' is that I can see them almost all the time with the lights out. Your right it's technically not the color 'grey' but it glows more than I'd like nonetheless. You'll see what I mean when you watch a UT50 in a dark room that Panasonic was really on the ball this year. Your also correct about incremental improvements. Sure it's no miracle tv but for someone fresh shopping for a brand new set I would point them toward the UT50 first, esp with budget in mind.

Okay your points are well taken. Certainly all of the Panny's are getting rave reviews this year. One thing I was curious about in your settings was the 3:2 pulldown set to auto, was wondering if that actually works this year, I know on last years models when it was set to auto the sets failed the 1080i de-interlacing test, on my ST30 setting it to "ON" definitely makes a difference. If you watch mostly bluray maybe that is a non factor.

I've revised my settings. So in case you dialed them in you need to go back and look at the settings I posted for my review. I noticed white clipping that I didn't catch so contrast needed to be dialed down. Brightness also needed to be backed off one click (matching D-Nice's ST30 setting) due to an ever slight shimmer in the picture. I'm very picky so I want it right. 56 is really it.

If anyone is interested in settings for PAL content let me know and I'll get around to it eventually. Color will be different.

One thing I was curious about in your settings was the 3:2 pulldown set to auto, was wondering if that actually works this year, I know on last years models when it was set to auto the sets failed the 1080i de-interlacing test, on my ST30 setting it to "ON" definitely makes a difference. If you watch mostly bluray maybe that is a non factor.

I do watch blu-rays exclusively, and it behaves fine. However I do have 1080i caps so I'll look into it and let you know. Very interesting.

I do watch blu-rays exclusively, and it behaves fine. However I do have 1080i caps so I'll look into it and let you know. Very interesting.

I picked that up from the CNET review of the ST30 last year. Wouldn't be the first time a supposedly "automatic" setting didnt work as advertised, Samsungs had that issue with certain setting also. Have yet to find a media review of the UT50 would be curious to see how it compares to other sets in the same price range. Sounds like it compares very favorably with the e550 but with deeper blacks.

After sitting in front of an ST50 for 2.5 hours in a completely dark basement theater I can say with confidence that the black levels on this set are exceptional-- but unless the UT50 is doing something the ST50 isn't there is no way someone could, with a straight face, say that the blacks are Kuro level. With the brightness of these displays the image could vary well be more appealing and I've been the first to mention that ultimate black level shouldn't be the first, second third and fourth priority. For me, the black level of the 2012 sets appears to be more than sufficient to satisfy anyone but the strictest black-o-philes.

"For small creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love."

My father just picked up this set yesterday and I have to say that it blew my 2008 Panasonic out of the water. I will be picking up the 60" up later this year.

I was the muscle for these clowns, I helped them bring it home and set it up. At the recommendation of Overwilhelmed to rock a Panny, which were further solidified by the posts I read on here (also at his recommendation), I purchased a November 2011 build 55GT30 and LOVE it.

Although they decided to fire the 50UT50 up right out the box (just in time for the Flyers game) I decided to run the 100 hours of D-nice's slides and calibrate the set to his settings. For the few hours that we spent in front of the UT50 yesterday, I couldn't tell any difference in black levels between the 55GT30 and 50UT50. Now, the UT50 wasn't calibrated at all so the colors are different than my GT30, and yes the UT50 lacks the Pro settings like the GT30 (and also does NOT have THX picture mode), but I think you could replicate some very similar results out of the UT50.

Pair that with the price of the UT50 and I just might buy one of these for the bedroom too!

I wish someone would offer black level readings on these mid-range & budget pdps from Panasonic & compare them to what the measurements read on the st/gt/vt.

I'm not needing anything 3d, as most reviews of st50/gt50 have been mediocre & certainly not improving on the 3d from st30/gt30. I'm looking @ purchasing the TC-P50U54 @ a local Costco. I'm wondering what kind of black level falling off i'll be getting, as opposed to purchasing a ST50 or even a UT50. Anyone care to approximate?

After sitting in front of an ST50 for 2.5 hours in a completely dark basement theater I can say with confidence that the black levels on this set are exceptional-- but unless the UT50 is doing something the ST50 isn't there is no way someone could, with a straight face, say that the blacks are Kuro level. With the brightness of these displays the image could vary well be more appealing and I've been the first to mention that ultimate black level shouldn't be the first, second third and fourth priority. For me, the black level of the 2012 sets appears to be more than sufficient to satisfy anyone but the strictest black-o-philes.

How bout those that don't need the 3d or the AR filter, then the U50 should suffice right?!?

I know where your going with this and I'd be curious to know too. I would probably save the pennies for the UT50, and I'm sure you'll catch a deal with a little patience. That's what I'd do and if anything it incorporates the new 2500 focus field drive. This could be smoke and mirrors but something's different about it. With that said, I wouldn't be surprised if you put a 50U50 next to a 50GT50 and be hard pressed with benchmark 2D content. Of course I haven't seen a U series, so just going by what I have.

How about some 3D settings? I am finding myself using the vivid mode for 3D viewing due to the shade of the glasses it brightens up the screen I do turn down the contrast and brightness so it isn't cranked up all the way. For the 3d effect i'm at +2 haven't really messed around with the 2D>3D conversion mode.

How bout those that don't need the 3d or the AR filter, then the U50 should suffice right?!?

It depends. The U50 has the 600 Hz Sub-Field Drive, while the UT50 has the 2,500 Focused Field Drive. The 3D models do have higher-performing panels and do provide better picture quality on regular 2D content than the non-3D models do.

It depends. The U50 has the 600 Hz Sub-Field Drive, while the UT50 has the 2,500 Focused Field Drive. The 3D models do have higher-performing panels and do provide better picture quality on regular 2D content than the non-3D models do.

I wish my local Costco had a UT54, there U-model is the U54, maybe I'll try it for a few, after all, they had the ST34 in stock through a month or 2 ago, maybe they'll have ST54 or UT54 in a month or two.

It depends. The U50 has the 600 Hz Sub-Field Drive, while the UT50 has the 2,500 Focused Field Drive. The 3D models do have higher-performing panels and do provide better picture quality on regular 2D content than the non-3D models do.